Material cutting device



1952 H. R. ROSENBERRY 2,614,320

MATERIAL CUTTING DEVICE Filed May 9, 1949 Patented Oct. 21, 1952 e-iuNlreo STATES PATENT OFFICE I CUTTING DEVICE Homer R Rosenberry, Scudder, Ontario, Canada Application May 9, 1949, Serial No. 92,163

This invention relates to sheet-metal cuttin andperforating in general, and relates particu' larly to an'improved device for opening common metal fw ns- M. V Sheet-material cutters and can openers can be fairly well classified into three types: H v I r (1) Acutte'r wheel and a drive wheel mounted on a rotatable shaft, with a pressure-bearing member to serve as a cutting anvil. Thecutting wheel is roundwith a smooth sharpcutting edge, and'is forced along, much as the front wheel oi a tractor is forced along, by the drive wheel; The drive wheel isusually knurled to bite into the surface of the metal for driving traction. 1 V (2) The knife wheel and drive wheel are pesitioned on opposing movable members,v thereby eliminating a separate pressure-bearing member. 3), fixed. knife an an l ie dr ve. h drive consists of a knurled drive wheel with means to force the drive wheel into driving engagement with the material to be out.

The primary, but not the only weakness; with 4 Claims. (Cl. 30*155) each of these devices isthat the knurled drive j wheel has a tendency to act as a milling cutter and cut into the soft material at the least resistance of the cutter tool to feed along the material. 1

An object of this invention is to provide a material-cutting device having 'onewheel with a cutting edge adapted to both drive the device and cut the material. f v

Another object of this invention is to provide a material-cutting wheel that cannot rotate with respeotto the material, after engagement there With, without cutting the mat erial'. v e

Another object of this invention is' to provide an improved cutter adapted to pierce and then shear a series of small portions'in linear alignment'.

Another object of this invention isto provide a cutter adapted to pierce thematerial along the line of shearing just in advance-of the actual shearing, to thereby interlock with the material and provide positive drive advancement "of the cutter, but not producing any visible damage to the material other than the intended "shearing after the cutter has passed.

Still another object of this invention is to pro-- vide a unique method of cutting and feeding with one tool in which a fixed track is utilized for locking the material to be out by means ofa plier action, said track acting as a guide. a v A still further object of this invention is to provide a can opener device to indent a retainer ledge into the side of the can as the opener oper- 2 ates, and thereby prevent the severed lid from dropping into the can. H Other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention maybe had by referring to the following description and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure l is a top plan view of a material-cutting device incorporating features of my invention, and particularly adapted to open metal food cans; Figure 2 is a side view of the device of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a bottom view of the device of Figure 1; Figure eis a botteni view of the device of Fig ure 1, with the handles opened to receive the material to be cut; Figure 5 is a section taken along line ii tof Figure 1 wi th apomon of metal food canadded to illustrate therelative operative position or the can a r; 1 Q t Figure 6 is a perspective View of the improved cutter wheel;

Fgure 7 is a and 7 g FigureB is an enlarged illustration of several cutting teeth to sliowthe' series or teeth arn an advanced relationship of piercing and shearr ng-mi n with respect to the tooth following.-

In the drawing, a form of the preferred embo'difn'ent of this invention has been eaa tearer use in removing the tops from metal food cans. Theillustrated eanop'ener comprises a first nan: dle ib "and a second handle H pivotall'y joined at one end thereof by eans 'o'fapivot' 1 2-. The improved cutting device of this invention is rot'atably carried on this handle Hl'by means of a drive shaft HI pivotally bearinged on the andle m and extending therethro'ugh to arm ingly support the wheel l3. In the illustrated embodiment, the drive shaft I4 is provided with a wing'cranli [5 for convenient finger-gripping.

The second-handle n is provided with 'a pressur'e bearin'g trackit n position to coact with "said Wheel [3 and press materialrhtojcutuug relationship with'thewheel 13 by pivotal closing or the first and sec nd hanmes m and H together. In other words; material may be clamped by the pressure-bearing track l9 a'rid the edge or the wheel l3 by Closing the handles-ID and section through the cutter wheel H toward one answer. I

Figures '6' and 7 illustrate the improved cut ting devioe'oi this invention in the' font of 'a wheel. The wheel (a may be machined from a solid piece of material, but the illustrated em: bodi-ment is a stamping and is found {to give very satisfactoryserw'ce. It is preferable that 'the wheel I3 be made of a material which may be conveniently hardened in order that longer service may be obtained before the wheel I3 wears out, but a soft steel cutting wheel has been made and used without heat treatment, and because of the superior cutting action provided did not wear out as quickly as the usual round cutting Wheel normally employed in can-opening devices.

The wheel I3 is tapered at the peripheral edge thereof to an acute angle cutting edge 2 I, but the superior cutting action which I have discovered is provided by the tooth form and cutting action best illustrated in Figure 8.

The edge 2I of the wheel I3 is serrated to provide a series of cutting members It for piercing action followed by cleaving action over a short length of the material to be cut. The piercing. and cleaving action is repeated in linear sequence until the desired severance has been accomplished. Furthermore, the improved serrated edge which is illustrated provides a positive driving action for the wheel in such amanner that the cutting wheel cannot rotate withrespect to the material to be out after engagement with the material. That is, the form of the cutting wheel both drives the cutting wheel and performs the cutting action, and absolutely prevents the cutting wheel from milling out a small portion of the material and thereafter simply turning in a fixed position with respect to the material without producing further cutting action.

This improved combination drive-piercingcleaving action may be explained best with reference to the Figure 8. In the Figure 8 cutting members IS on a small portion of the edge 2I are illustrated greatly enlarged. Each cutting member I6 isillustrated in the progressive posi-- tions of cutting to illustrate the individual tooth action as the wheel I3 progresses along the surface of the material to be cut. The edge 2|, as before stated, is serrated, and thereby provides a plurality of cutting members I6 each having a piercing end I! and a cleaving edge I8. In the Figure 8, the edge 2I of the Wheel I3 has been forced into contact with the material to be out until the ends I! of cutting members I6 have pierced the material. The forcing may be done by means of the pressure-bearing track I9, as illustrated in the Figures 1 to 4, or by any other suitable means adapted to press the material against the wheel or to press the wheel against the material. The important consideration is that the wheel be pressed against the surface of the material to be cut with sufilcient force to pierce the-material and hold that force of the material and wheel so long as cutting action is desired. In Figure 8, it will be seen that cutting members I6 have been forced through the material to be cut with a piercing action. Thereafter the wheel I3 is rotated until each cutting member I6 rolls to the position of the next preceding tooth. It will be noted that the edges I8 of some cutting members I6 are just beginning to cleave the material to be cut, and that the piercing ends I! of advanced cutting members I6 are approaching the metal to begin to pierce the material. The ends I! of members I6 are therefore interlocked with the material when they pierce the material, and will force the wheel I3 to advance with respect to the material, and therefore force the cleaving edge I8 of following cutting members I6 to roll and cleave the material.

The angular edge 2| of the wheel I3, as the members I6 sever the metal. forces the severed metal of the can back into tight contact with the side wall of the can substantially at the point indicated by the reference character 26 in Figure 5. The metal which is thus pressed tightly against the Wall will be completely free of dangerous cutting points. However, a further feature than safety is obtained by folding the severed metal against the side wall, namely, that the folded metal stands out in relief from the can wall, and the sloping side 21 of the angular edge U will follow the folded material on a track. Thus, in addition to the piercing interlock of the members I6, the severed material folds back and acts as a drive track to provide positive drive of the cutting wheel I3.

Because each cutting member I8 performs the exact function as the preceding one, the Figure 8 actually may be thought of as a stroboscopic view of one or more cutting members I6. The Figure 8 clearly shows that the cutting members I6 act as interlocking drive members from the moment when they first pierce the material, and that from the moment of first piercing, each tooth cleaves by a combination punching and rolling action. After each cutting member first pierces the material, the cleaving by side I 8 takes place in the direction of movement. Therefore, each member I6 enters the material and cuts forwardly until it cuts into the opening started by the tooth preceding.

The illustrated can opener embodiment .of the invention has a further feature heretofore unknown to the industry. The track membe I9 has for one function guiding and pressing the wheel I3 and the material together into cutting relationship. It has been found that the track members, as they move relative to the can wall. press a small indentation 25 into the can, thereby producing a throat of smaller dimension than the original can dimension. Therefore, when the lid is severed, it cannot fall into the can.

Another use to which this invention may be placed, as an illustration of its advantages, is the perforation of material to provide a line along which easy bending or tearing may be performed.

To perforate without shearing, the cutting members I6 are spaced to prevent the above described joining of sequential severances. Thereby, a series of spaced incisions is provided by the piercing-followed-by-cleaving action, but the material is not severed.

The improved cutting action of this invention may be applied in many ways, and the illustrated embodiment is, only for the purpose of setting forth one example. The method of drive, the method of providing piercing pressure and anvil backing, and the wheel form of the cutter may be varied to suit a particular adaptation without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. Material-cutting device comprising, a driving and cutting wheel combination, said wheel having a center of rotation, a bottom wall of large diameter and a top wall of smaller diameter with a sloping edge wall therebetween, a continuous series of cutting members out into said edge wall, each said cutting member having a substantially straight edge extending in a radial direction from said center, and a cleavage edge having a center of generation located away from the said center of the wheel, said straight edge and cleavage edge meeting at a piercing end point defining an included angle less than 90,

said cleavage edge of one cutting member meeting the radially extending edge of an adjacent member and defining an included angle therewith not greater than 45, means to rotatably drive said wheel, pressure-bearing jaw means, and means to force said pressure-bearing means toward said wheel, said pressure-bearing jaw means and said wheel acting as a clamp to hold a substance to be cut therebetween in a longitudinally slidable grip, but held against later movement away from said cutting wheel.

2. Material-cutting device comprising, first handle means and second handle means, pivot means joining said first and second handle means in lateral pivotable relationship, a driving and cutting wheel combination, means rotatably mounting said wheel on said first handle means with the wheel extending laterally in the direction of pivotal movement of said first handle, said wheel having a center of rotation, a bottom wall of large diameter and a top wall of smaller diameter with a sloping edge wall therebetween, a continuous series of cutting members out into said edge wall, each said cutting member having a substantially straight edge extending in a radial direction from said center of rotation, a cleavage edge, said straight edge and cleavage edge meeting at a piercing end point defining an included angle less than 90, said cleavage edge of one cutting member meeting the straight edge of an adjacent member and defining an included angle therewith not greater than 45, means to rotatably drive said wheel, and pressure-bearing means mounted on said second handle means in position to coact with said wheel and press material into cutting relationship with said wheel by pivotally closing said first and second handle means together, whereby driving rotation of said wheel will cause said cutting members in sequential order to each pierce the material to be cut and roll with respect to the material and thereby cleave a series of continuous portions of said material and advance the material-cutting device with respect to the material.

3. Material-cutting device comprising, first handle means and second handle means, pivot means joining said first and second handle means in lateral pivotable relationship, a driving and cutting wheel, means rotatably mounting said wheel on said first handle means with said edge extending laterally in the direction of pivotal movement of said first handle, said wheel having a center of rotation, a first side wall of large diameter and a second side wall of smaller diameter with a sloping edge wall therebetween, a continuous series of cutting members out into said edge wall to define a peripheral edge of the wheel, each said cutting member having a substantially straight edge extending in a radial direction from said center of rotation, and a cleavage edge formed by the junction of said edge wall and said first side wall, said straight edge and cleavage edge meeting at a piercing end point defining an included angle less than said cleavage edge of one cutting member meeting the straight edge of an adjacent member and defining an included angle therewith not greater than 45, means to rotatably drive said wheel, and pressure-bearing means mounted on said second handle means in position to coact with said wheel and press material into cutting relationship with said wheel by pivotally closing said first and second handle means together, whereby driving rotation of said wheel will cause said cutting members in sequential order to each pierce the material to be cut and roll with respect to the material and thereby cleave a series of contiguous portions of said material and advance the material-cutting device with respect to the material.

4. Material-cutting device comprising, first handle means and second handle means, pivot means joining said first and second handle means in lateral pivotable relationship, a driving and cutting wheel combination, means rotatably mounting said wheel on said first handle means with the wheel extending laterally in the direction of pivotal movement of said first handle, said wheel having a center ofrotation, a bottom wall of large diameter and a top wall of smaller diameter with a sloping edge wall therebetween, a continuous series of cutting members out into said edge wall, each said cutting member having a substantially straight edge extending in a radial direction from said center of rotation, a cleavage edge, said straight edge and cleavage edge meeting at a piercing end point defining an included angle less than 90, said cleavage edge of one cutting member meeting the straight edge of an adjacent member and defining an included angle therewith not greater than 45, means to rotatably drive said wheel, and pressure-bearing means mounted on said second handle means in position to coact with said wheel and press material into cutting relationship with said wheel by pivotally closing said first and second handle means together, said pressure-bearing means having an indentation-forming portion located at an elevation below said cutter wheel adapted to indent the material being cut below the cutting position.

HOMER R. ROSENBERRY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,311,686 Goddard July 29, 1919 1,528,178 Anderson Mar. 3, 1925 1,687,582 Noble Oct. 16, 1928 

